Much Ado About Something
by jls-3887
Summary: The Ministry of Magic now believe that drama education should be required for wizarding students, and what better way to test this than to go to Hogwarts?
1. Something Different

Chapter 1: Something Different  
  
Harry put his quill down and tightened his fingers, the muscles hurting from writing the long essay for Snape. He flipped through his books with his other hand while he flexed his fingers. He looked up at Ron on the other side of the table, he wasn't having much luck either.  
  
"You know, Harry," Ron said, snapping his book shut. "I don't know why Snape gives us this stuff! I mean, he knows that none of us will ever use it! Come on!" Ron picked up his parchment and pointed at random potion names.  
  
"When the bloody hell am I ever going to use a herpe-removal potion?" he said, turning a bit red. "Well, you never know who you'll run into in Hogsmeade!" Harry laughed. Ron mocked laughed, and stood up.  
  
"Where are you going?" Harry asked, picking up his quill. "I'm not doing this anymore. Snape can shove it!" Ron picked up his books and parchment.  
  
"But it's due tomorrow!" Harry exclaimed.  
  
"Yeah, right. I'll finish later. See ya, Harry." Ron turned to leave the library, and Ginny passed him on her way in.  
  
"Hey, Harry!" Ginny said, sitting down across from him.  
  
"Hi, Ginny," he said, not looking up, write furiously.  
  
"How was practice?" he said wincing slightly. He had missed practice to finish his essay for Transfiguration the day before.  
  
"Oh it was good. We're trying a new maneuver now. Pretty difficult," she said. Harry looked up and was about to tell her he was busy, but he didn't. Ginny looked somehow, very different.  
  
"Ginny, you look different. New look, or.." he asked, turning a bit red. "Oh, not really, Harry." She laughed.  
  
"I didn't do anything. I mean, nothing out of the ordinary." She smiled. "I can see you're busy though," she said, beginning to stand up.  
  
"Oh no! It's ok," he said, closing his books. "I'm done." He smiled, and stood up. "What's for dinner?"  
  
They walked back down to the Great Hall together, talking about Quidditch. "You know, the Cannons got a new Seeker? Parkins? He's amazing!"  
  
When they entered the Hall, Ginny and Harry found Ron sitting across from Hermione, who had her books propped open against her juice jug. "You know Hermione, you don't have to re-write the Potions essay. It's fine." Ron said between bites of steak.  
  
"I know, I'm just afraid this is a big deal, you know? I mean, Snape's making such a big deal out of it!" she said not looking up, taking a bite out of her pumpkin pasty. Ron shook his head and continued eating.  
  
"Hey guys," Harry said, sitting beside Hermione, Ginny sitting across from him. "Oh, hi Harry," Hermione said looking up. "Did you finish your essay?" she asked. "Um...I'm almost done actually. I just got a little tired, you know? There's only so much hemorrhoid ointment I can take." He said. He took a pumpkin pasty off of Hermione's plate, and she glanced sidelong at him, smiling.  
  
When they were finished, they all went back to the Common Room and lounged about. "Ron! You're not even halfway done with your essay!" Hermione said over his shoulder. Ron sighed, and mock poked her with his quill.  
  
"Well, it's kind of hard to write with a squawking bird over me, jeeze.." he said, looking back to his paper. Hermione shook her head, and walked over to a chair by the fireplace. Harry finished his essay and stood up, stretched, and sat back down.  
  
"Damn, that's long!" he said, rolling up his parchment and sticking it back in his bag. "You're done? Good, Harry," Hermione said smiling. "Do you think you could help me study for my Ancient Runes test tomorrow? It's pretty vigorous." Harry agreed and walked over to the fireplace.  
  
About two hours later, Ron stood up, and got ready to go to bed, but Harry stopped him. "Hey Ron, come here." He said. There were the only two left in the Common Room. "A trip to Hogsmeade is coming up. Do you think you could," Harry stopped.  
  
He couldn't believe he was about to ask his best friend this. "Ask Ginny if she'd come with me to the Three Broomsticks?" Harry winced for Ron's reaction. It didn't come. A smiled pealed across Ron's face, and he turned a bit red.  
  
"Of course! I've been waiting to ask you if you liked her!" Ron laughed, and slapped Harry on the back. Harry wasn't sure how to act. How had he known? It had never occurred to Harry really until today? Harry shrugged and got ready to leave. "Wait a minute," Ron said, behind Harry as he was about to go up the steps.  
  
"You own me a favor.." Ron said slyly. "Uh...what do you want?" Harry said, turning slowly. Ron's face was turning very red, but he continued to smile. Harry thought he looked like the Kool-Aid guy, only not fat and made of plastic.  
  
"Well," Ron got close to Harry, in case others heard apparently. "I would really like you to talk to Hermione." He said. Harry could tell Ron's mouth was dry because he saw the skin pealing on his mouth. "Hermione?" Harry said in disbelief.  
  
"Yeah, is that bad?" Ron asked in a protective voice. "I just want to, ya know, walk around Hogsmeade with her." He said, defensively. "I really like her Harry." He said, looking down. Harry couldn't believe it. Why hadn't he told him before?  
  
"Um..Ron, that's weird!" He blurted out. "Why? I just want to know something.." he said. "What?" "Not from you, you git!" He yelled. "Ok, OK! Calm down. I'll talk to her." He said.  
  
The next day, Harry awoke feeling odd. He felt a tremendous weight on him, but it shouldn't have been that big of a deal. I mean, he just had to talk to her.  
  
After Transfiguration.. "Hermione, wait," Harry said, slinging his bag over his shoulder. "I want to talk to you."  
  
She waited for him, and they exited the room together. "What's up Harry? Are you ok?" she asked, she seemed worried. "Oh yeah, I'm fine," he lied.  
  
"I wanted to ask you something." He said, wiping the back of his neck. "Sure," she said, unsure.  
  
"Well, there's a Hogsmeade trip coming up, and I wanted to know if.." he stopped. Hermione had stopped walking and stared at Harry. "Yeah," she said in a quiet voice. "If you'd.."  
  
Hermione seemed to stop breathing. "If you'd go on a date with, uh, Ron." He said, looking away. Hermione's mouth dropped a little, but she quickly closed it. "Ron..?" she asked in disbelief.  
  
"Yeah, he wants to talk, I guess.." Harry didn't know what Ron wanted, he just kept thinking about Ginny. "Well, Harry.." Her expression changed a bit, she seemed sad. "Sure, I'll go with Ron." She nodded, looking past Harry. She seemed to be reassuring herself.  
  
"I will." "Great!" Harry said. Wasn't so bad, he thought. "See ya!" he sped off for Defense Against the Dark Arts, leaving Hermione standing in the hallway. 


	2. Hogsmeade

Chapter 2: Hogsmeade  
  
"She said yes, Ron!" Harry told him during DADA. "Are you serious?" he said. Ron acted as though he wanted to jump up and down, but restrained himself. "How did she act? What did she do?" he asked excitedly. Harry hadn't seen him this excited since he's spilled chicken pox potion on Draco. "She, well, she was awestruck, it seemed." Harry said. "Oh my God!" Ron said.  
  
"Yeah so, uh, what about Ginny?" he asked. Ron ignored Harry and started writing RW HG on his parchment. "Ron!" he yelled. "Oh..what?" he said, scratching out his emblem quickly. "Ginny?" he asked impatiently.  
  
"Oh, she said yeah." He said, going back to his drawing. "Well, how did she react?" Harry asked. He felt like shaking Ron. "Oh, uh... she acted like I was crazy. She couldn't believe you'd want to go with her, to be quite honest. I told her you'd liked her since our 2nd year." Ron said.  
  
Harry thought about that statement. He had never actually thought about Ginny that way until the other day. Something about her intrigued him—she didn't look like a little girl anymore—she was older somehow. It was puzzling.  
  
Hogsmeade weekend came and Harry and Ron tried making themselves look nice. "Ron, you look like you're going to the Yule Ball." Harry said, pointing at his robes. "Wha? Oh, I was just checking if they still fit, you know?" Ron started to change.  
  
Harry, on the other hand, had put some cologne on—he had gotten it from Neville's bag. Why it was in there, he didn't ask.  
  
Harry and Ron waited for Ginny and Hermione in the Common Room. Ron stood with his arms folded, looking at his watch. "Girls," he laughed. "Always late." He shook his head. Harry noticed that Ron was acting very odd, but didn't say anything. He tried not to laugh actually.  
  
About fifteen minutes later, Ginny and Hermione came down to the Common Room. Ginny had her hair up in a pony tail, with a braid hanging in the front. Harry smiled to himself—she looked very nice. Hermione looked...plain. She had a dark red jacket on and blue jeans. "Hermione," Harry said. "You know that it's about 85 degrees outside, right?" "Yes, I know Harry." She said, her arms folded. She walked up to Ron, and smiled a bit.  
  
When they reached Hogsmeade, they parted—well, the pairs did. Ron looked back at Harry as he walked with Hermione toward the end of the road, and winked at Harry. Ginny and Harry walked to the Three Broomsticks and found a good seat near the back. It wasn't too crowded today, Harry thought. They ordered 2 butterbeers, and talked. "Um, Ginny, I know this odd," he admitted. "Harry, it's really funny that you asked me." She said shyly. "You know, I figured you liked someone else, you know? I mean, I'm just the 'best- friend's little sister'" she laughed.  
  
They talked for a long time, how long, Harry didn't know. Quidditch seemed to come up the most often, and it made Harry happy to know that Ginny wouldn't just start crying like Cho. He was also very happy that she didn't bring up anything too personal—like Sirius. Not that he wouldn't have told her his feelings, she was there. She had helped in the Department of Mysteries. He felt, all in all, thoroughly pleased.  
  
A few hours later, Ginny and Harry decided to walk around Hogsmeade. "Do you want to see the Shrieking Shack?" Ginny asked. "I—"Harry stopped; that reminded him of Sirius. "Oh, Harry, I'm sorry. I—" "Know, it's Ok! We can go." He smiled. He didn't mind going, it might make him happier, ironically.  
  
They walked up to the fence and stared at it. It was just as empty as it had been three years earlier, he thought. "You know," Harry said. "Hermione and I snuck in there at dark? That was so freaky!" he said.  
  
"Yeah, I know." Ginny said, smiling. Harry stopped looking at the house, and turned to Ginny. She was taller than he had remembered. Her eyes were so brown, and he felt like he could see right into her—it was really deep. He leaned in and they kissed. Harry felt his whole body warm up, and when they stopped, Ginny was blushing as furiously as Ron. He smiled at her, and they looked back to the Shrieking Shack.  
  
When they returned to Hogwarts, Ginny waved to Harry and walked back to her dorm. Harry went to sit in the Common Room, and he found Ron sitting lazily in a chair by the fireplace, sucking on a fireworks lollypop he must have gotten from Honeydukes. He was staring off into the distance; he looked in a trance. Harry smiled and took a seat. "Ron, you ok?" Harry asked, warily. "Oh yeah, I'm good.." he smiled. "Ok.." Harry looked confused, and picked up a Quidditch magazine he had found on the carpet. After about 2 minutes of silence, Ron sighed. "You know Harry, I am so glad you asked me to ask Ginny for you." He said. "Ok.." Harry said, looking through the magazine, spotting Viktor Krum dodging a bludger.  
  
"Yeah, I mean I wouldn't have ever asked Hermione. She's...wow." Ron said. Harry looked up. Ron's face resembled his first look at Fleur Delacour. "I'm afraid to ask what you did..." Harry laughed. "Oh, there's no way I could describe it..We—" "No, I don't want to know!" Harry said, looking disgusted. "Oh you prat! We didn't do anything like that. We, we...talked." He said with a sigh. "Well, that's great. A good way to start a relationship." Harry said, looking back at the magazine. 


	3. Drama Education

Chapter 3: Drama Education  
  
When dinner came, Dumbledore rose and made an announcement: "Students! It is such a pleasure to announce to you that we are about to meet England's standards for drama education!"  
  
The students stared at each other. Harry could see from his seat that Snape didn't look to thrilled. He rolled his eyes, and propped his elbow up on the staff table.  
  
"To elaborate, a worker from the Ministry of Magic has joined us, and will aid us in this endeavor." He said. His hand stretched towards the large doors at the other end of the hall, and a tall, slender woman entered. She had long blonde hair and what looked like, yellow eyes.  
  
"This is Ms. Landor. She will explain everything to you." Harry was so confused. "Well students, as Professor Dumbledore said, I am Ms. Landor, and I will be helping you put on a play." A hand shot in the air. "Yes?" she asked.  
  
"Why exactly are we putting on a play?" Hermione asked. "The play is for Ministry's test purposes. The department that deals with education seems to believe it is necessary for you all to be well versed in the arts, and what better way to do this, than to immerse you in a play." She said airily.  
  
"Ok—but, what play are we doing?" she asked. Hermione seemed extremely interested. "Well, since this is the England, there is quite a selection. Christopher Marlowe, Chaucer— "Shakespeare!" Hermione squealed.  
  
"Yes... your Head of House will explain all." She said, smiling. "Yes.." Hermione smirked. "This will be so wonderful!" she said to Harry.  
  
Ron looked oddly at Hermione. "Shakespeare? What, do you want to do 'Romeo and Juliet'?" he asked, taunting her. She smiled and shook her head. "There is a lot more than 'Romeo and Juliet'. There's—"  
  
Ms. Landor cut her off again as she answered more questions. "I would like everyone to return their houses as soon as possible, and your Head of House shall explain the rest."  
  
The students stood up and made their way back to their Common Rooms. Harry sighed and walked alongside Ginny and Ron; Hermione, who walked behind them, looked very happy. "Hermione," Ron asked. "What's up with you? Who cares about a stupid play?" he asked. "Oh Ron, plays are magnificent! Especially Shakespeare. I hope we get to do Julius Caesar!" she exclaimed. Ron rolled his eyes and continued to walk by her.  
  
"What do you want to do?" Harry asked Ginny. "Um...I think I like Soren Vandlebuck's 'A Wizard in Time'," she said. "I haven't heard of that," Harry laughed. -- When they arrived back in the Common Room, Professor McGonagall was waiting for them. She, as usual didn't seem happy. She had a brown book in her left hand, and a quill in her right.  
  
"Quiet everyone," she said as the students piled in. "Quiet. This play shouldn't last that long." She said with a bit of relief.  
  
After the students had settled, she began. "As Ms. Landor said, this is solely for test purposes; the Ministry seems to think this is necessary, and thusly, we have to do it." She dropped the giant book on a table. "So then, let me explain to you all how important this is—"she cleared her throat.  
  
"The production of this play means that you'll have an extra hour of schooling each day now," she stopped waiting for the groans—they were very loud. Ginny giggled at all the noise, and Seamus and Dean acted like they were dying. "Now now, it's not...that bad." Professor McGonagall said. Harry noticed how much she was trying to convince herself as much as she was everyone else.  
  
"So...first thing's first.." she said, pulling a scroll from her robes. The scroll was long, but McGonagall scanned it quickly. "Though classes will be longer each day, the production of the play, as well as your conduct in it, will grant you a 'pass' on any one of your final exams...which I would hope would NOT be Transfiguration. Of course, Ms. Landor must sign for you, saying that you have done what is expected of you during the play.."  
  
All of the students' faces lit up, but Harry noticed that Hermione seemed confused. "Wait a minute.." she put her hand up. "Yes Ms. Granger..?" McGonagall said.  
  
"If we're passing the class already, is it possible to just, you know, use Drama as another credit towards graduation?" Hermione asked earnestly. Professor McGonagall's face twitched a bit, which Harry could tell was the beginning of a smile.  
  
"Ms. Granger, isn't there any class you would like to use a waiver for?" she asked, knowing the answer. "Well, not really. I mean I—" "Ms. Granger, we'll discuss this later. Moving on.." Professor McGonagall took off her glasses.  
  
"Tomorrow night, there will be a drawing for the parts within each play. It is completely random, and you cannot get out of the play." She added, staring at Neville Longbottom. "Also, the parts are SO random, that it is a great possibility that students from other houses will be working in the same play as you all." She said. Harry sighed—what if Draco got put into his play?  
  
"So, here are the optional plays...these are random as well." "What?" Hermione yelled. "But, that's not—" "Ms. Granger, I didn't make the rules, so I cannot change them." Professor McGonagall said. She sounded tired of answering questions, so Hermione put her hand down. "The plays are..." McGonagall went down a very long list, and none of the plays interested Harry. He had heard of 'Antigone' and 'The Clouds', but he wasn't too excited.  
  
"So, it will be chosen tomorrow. There will be four plays, and each student will be assigned to one. Good night everyone, see you tomorrow."  
  
The students stayed up very late talking about the possible plays they would be performing in. "You know? 'That Oedipus Rex' play sounds awesome!" "Yeah, but what about 'The Seven Gates of Thebes'? That's a masterpiece!"  
  
It sounded odd to Harry that the kids were interested in it, so he looked at the sheet that McGonagall left pinned up in the Common Room—none of the plays looked promising. He turned back and sat by the fireplace. Hermione was sitting across from him, she looked in deep thought.  
  
"What play do you want?" Harry asked her. She didn't answer immediately. "Hermione?" he snapped his fingers. "Oh. What? What play? Oh, I would really like to do 'Electra'. That's a magnificent play. I want to go to the library and—"  
  
"Hermione, you don't even know what play it is yet. There's a good chance it won't be that, you know?" he said realistically. "Yeah, I know. But nonetheless..." 


	4. The Lottery

Chapter 4: The Lottery  
  
The next evening, Harry noticed an area roped off in the Great Hall. In the middle was a large cauldron with a green flame coming from the middle. It reminded him oddly of the Goblet of Fire from his 4th year.  
  
After dinner had ended, Ms. Landor quieted down the gentle roar. "Now now. We will now do the lottery for plays." She walked to the cauldron, held out her wand and said a small incantation inaudible to the crowd. She stuck her hand in the cauldron and pulled out a small piece of paper.  
  
"The first play will be—'Faust', by Christopher Marlowe." Hermione squealed with delight. Ms. Landor again reached in, and "The next play is 'Lysistrata' by Aristophanes." Hermione looked like she was going to explode with happiness. "The next, is 'The Crucible' by Arthur Miller."  
  
A few students whistled at the thought of a play about witches. Harry became excited. "And the last is—'Hamlet' by William Shakespeare." Hermione fell out of her chair. "Get up!" Harry helped her back up to the seat.  
  
"Now, we will do lottery for parts in each." This process took a lot of time with 1000 students, but Harry soon recognized names. "Neville Longbottom, Claudius in Hamlet." Neville scratched his head. "Is he good?" he whispered to Hermione.  
  
"Uh...you're the King of Denmark." She said with a half-smile. Neville straightened himself up and stuck his chest; he smiled proudly. "Draco Malfoy, Laertes in Hamlet." Draco sneered at the Slytherin table.  
  
"Colin Creevy, Fortinbras in Hamlet." Colin giggled, he had obviously read the play.  
  
"Next, I—"Ms. Landor stopped. "We must keep in mind that the cauldron draws the names, and sometimes, girls may get the parts of boys and vice versa..." she smiled oddly and read the name. "Luna Lovegood, Guildenstern in Hamlet." Harry saw that Luna seemed to have no reaction to this—she was reading the Quibbler.  
  
"Seamus Finnigan, the Ghost in Hamlet." Seamus wiggled his fingers and made an "ooooooh" noise at Dean. "Dean Thomas, Polonius in Hamlet." Dean sighed; he knew Polonius.  
  
"Vincent Crabbe, Voltimand." Crabbe smiled though it was obvious he hadn't read the play by the way he stuck his chest out.  
  
"He doesn't have a big part.." Hermione whispered to Harry. "Ginerva Weasley, Gertrude in Hamlet."  
  
Ginny seemed relieve to have gotten the part of a girl. "Cho Chang, Ophelia in Hamlet." Harry sighed. He hoped he wasn't in Hamlet.  
  
"Ronald Weasley, Rosencrantz in Hamlet." Ron smiled, but Hermione giggled. "What's wrong with that?" he asked, a bit annoyed. "You have to work with Luna." She laughed. Ron looked sad.  
  
"For some fun," Ms. Landor said pulling out the next lot. "We added teacher's names in." Harry glanced at the staff table and noticed the teachers all straighten up. Hagrid adjusted his coat, and scratched his beard.  
  
"And because of that, Severus Snape and Remus Lupin will play the two clowns in Hamlet." The entire school erupted in laughter, except of course, from Remus and Snape. They eyed one another, and Remus turned away laughing.  
  
"Harry Potter," Ms. Landor said. Harry gulped. "Hamlet, in Hamlet." Harry didn't know what to think. He looked at Hermione and she smiled brightly. "You have the lead Harry!" she said, shaking his arm. Ms. Landor went through more names that were for other plays for about an hour, and then moved back to Hamlet.  
  
"Hermione Granger," Ms. Landor said. Hermione looked shaken and excited, Harry noticed. "Horatio, in Hamlet." Hermione looked happier than she did when she received her O.W.L. results the year before. "Harry! That's so wonderful!" she said. Harry took her word for it. -- When Harry arrived at the Great Hall the next morning for breakfast, he received a new schedule.  
  
"Drama is 3rd hour for me," he said, staring to make sure he had no other classes. "And Potions is 7th."  
  
"Yeah, same for me," Ron said. "Actually," Hermione said. "Everyone in Hamlet will have it 3rd hour. It makes us all aware at the same time, you know?" 


	5. Drama Class Third Hour

Chapter 5: Drama Class- Third Hour  
  
When third hour came, Harry, Ron, Ginny, and Hermione walked to the class, which was near the North Tower of Hogwarts. "This is so exciting," Hermione said. She had checked out 'Hamlet' from the library and kept skimming the pages. "This is weird actually," Ron said. "I mean, I am Rosenstern?" he said, trying to remember. "Rosencrantz," Hermione reminded him. "Oh, whatever!" he said, turning red.  
  
When they entered the classroom, Ms. Landor greeted them. She looked different; her long blonde hair was down and she had on dark blue robes. She flittered around the room. "Take your seats, take your seats." She said as the students came in.  
  
When they had settled, "DRAMA!" Ms. Landor yelled, slamming her wand on Neville's desk. Neville gulped loudly.  
  
"Is a class that will teach you LIFE, skills," she said. Harry thought she reminded him of Professor Trelawney—completely serious, but crazy nonetheless. "You will learn the art of acting, and learn how truly to be your characters. You will BECOME them." She said. She quickly turned around twice, and settled at Luna's desk. "Ms..."  
  
"Luna." She said lazily. "Luna. Your character is.." "Guildencrantz." "Guildenstern." she corrected her. "You have an important role! You are to betray your best friend, Hamlet, along with Rosencrantz!" she said. Ron's eyebrows furrowed. "I don't want to be Rosenstern!" he whined. "Rosencrantz!" Hermione yelled.  
  
Ms. Landor looked offended. "You should not correct an artist so harshly," she said to Hermione. Hermione raised one of her eyebrows. "And which character are you?" she asked her. "I am Horatio." She smiled. "Horatio...you have quite a job on your hands, Ms.." "Granger. Hermione Granger." She said curtly.  
  
"Well, Hermione Granger. Did you know that your name is—" "Shakespearian? Yes, I do." She said happily. "Well...good. I hope you know as much about acting as you know about brown- nosing." Ms. Landor said. Hermione's jaw dropped. Harry shook a little bit, and was about to say something, but— "She didn't do anything!" Ron yelled. "Ok! I have had enough! You actors are undisciplined! I think it's time for an exercise." She smiled a bit mischievously.  
  
"This the Pair Pointer exercise," she said, walking to her desk and opening a book. "All of you have a partner in this play. One with whom you must be quite acquainted with so that you may act accordingly in the play. Good plays use character development to its fullest. So, each of you will be assigned a partner, the one you should be acquainted with because of your closeness in the play." She said. "Some of you, however, are lone characters in the play, like the Ghost for instance." Seamus smiled.  
  
"Therefore, you will be assigned a character that most closely relates to you, or if you wish, you can research on your own." She said. Seamus said: "I'm the Ghost, I think I'll just talk to Nearly Headless Nick." The students laughed.  
  
"Very well." She said, rolling her eyes a bit. "So, the pairs...Claudius and Gertrude." She said. Ginny and Neville stood up. "I am assigning you two to collaborate, once a day, for at least an hour. Gertrude and Claudius are married, and therefore, close." She said. A few students snickered. "Um... what are we supposed to do, though?" Ginny asked, pushing her long red hair out of her face.  
  
"Why, you're supposed to become close! You cannot act the part unless your ARE the part." She said. Neville smiled at Ginny, and they sat down. "Next...Ophelia and Laertes." Draco and Cho stood up.  
  
"You two are siblings. You are close! You must do the same as Gertrude and Claudius." Cho frowned and sat down; Draco rubbed his hands back and forth vigorously. "Next, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern." Ron and Luna stood up. "Same with you."  
  
"The two clowns." Remus Lupin and Severus Snape stood up in the back. The students laughed. "Quiet!" Snape snapped at them. "Ah...Severus and Remus. How good of you to join us," Ms. Landor said. "Yes, well, believe me, our delight is visible in our smile." Snape scowled. "I am sure it is. Well, 'clowns', you must work together in your...free time."  
  
"You know Ms. Landor," Remus said. "This is going to be quite difficult for Professor Snape and I. I mean, we're professors—we have jobs. Grading papers, creating tests..." "Giving students hell.." Ron said to Harry, pointing at Snape. "It's quite a job. Are the positions of the...clowns, quite necessary?" he asked.  
  
"Oh yes! Certainly!" Ms. Landor exclaimed. "The clowns are necessary for telling Hamlet what's happened while he has been in England! He needs them!" Remus looked at Harry. "He needs us? Well then, I guess—" "No! I refuse! I have much more important things to be doing than performing in some muggle play!" Snape yelled. "This is idiotic, and I think that the Ministry—" "Severus, I really don't think you want to go down that road the in the presence of innocent children." Ms. Landor said calmly. Snape shot a glance at Harry. "They aren't innocent! These kids are—" "Never mind, Severus. You'll perform in the play or the Ministry will hear about this. Besides, you don't have that many lines." She said, turning back to her desk with a smile. Severus crossed his arms and sat down in the back. Harry thought he looked like a disgruntled Christmas elf dressed in black. Remus took his seat with a sigh, looking as tired as ever. "Next, Hamlet and Horatio." Harry and Hermione stood up. "You have a very important relationship to the play," Ms. Landor said, walking towards them.  
  
"To become comfortable performing with such sincerity, I suggest getting to know your characters better. Hamlet is the most dynamic of all characters, as he should be, and Horatio is his...reason, you could say. The only one that does not have any...problems.. in the play, the only rational one." She said. Hermione smiled.  
  
"Great, now I'm crazy again..." Harry said, sitting down. "Not crazy," Ms. Landor said. "You have spite and vengeance in your heart. Your plan is devised out of anger, and see it as rational, but you come to see more than one side, and thus, you're indecisive. You will learn, Mr. Potter." She said.  
  
This didn't make Harry any happier, and he plopped down in his seat. 


	6. The Exercises

Chapter 6: The Exercises  
  
"So Ronald," Luna Lovegood said, walking up to Ron during dinner. "When would you like to do our exercise?" she asked, staring intently at him. "Erm...I guess we could do it Saturday," he said, picking up his juice jug. "But, Ms. Landor said we were supposed to do this one hour everyday." She added thoughtfully.  
  
"Yeah, but, I'm kind of busy, you know? I mean, we have a Quidditch match on Friday against Hufflepuff. A lot of practice you know..?" he said, looking away. "Ronald," she said, still standing there. "This is very important. Remember what she said? You know, this reminds me of the article about the Grape- Colored Flurikinjo in Wales, and it did the same—"  
  
"OK!" Ron said, putting his juice down. "Ok, how about at 8? I'll, uh...meet you in the library..." he said uncertainly. "Ok Ronald. I'll see you there." Harry saw her wander back to the Ravenclaw table and sit across from Cho. "So Harry," Ginny said, trying to divert his attention. "Yes?"  
  
"Are you looking forward to the play now? I mean, you do have the lead part." Ginny said, twirling her pasta. "Uh...sort of. I mean, I didn't want the lead. I guess I kind of have to read the play, I'm not sure what happens." He said. He hoped that nothing too gruesome happened.  
  
"Don't worry Harry. If Ms. Landor is as avid about the play as she acts that she is," Hermione said in a half-mocking voice. "She'll help us read the play in class, instead of just practicing lines." She said, drinking her pumpkin juice. "I guess, but just in case, I think I'll look at it. I don't understand it." He said, scratching his head.  
  
"Well, if she doesn't, we can just read it when we have to do our Pointer Pair exercise," she added. "Oh yeah, Hermione, I forgot about that. Could we start tomorrow, please? I mean, I have a lot to do tonight." "Sure," she said, putting the rest of her pumpkin juice down.  
  
"Welcome, welcome!" Ms. Landor said, walking slowly back in forth in front of the class. "Today, we will begin 'Hamlet', by William Shakespeare." She smiled brightly. "If you haven't received one, I have a copy of the complete play for each of you. Who needs one?" she asked, looking around the room. Two long arms came up in the back.  
  
"Ah, Severus and Remus." Ms. Landor walked to the back of the room and handed them each a copy of the play. "I am quite sure you'll make exquisite clowns..." she added walking slowly away. "Oh yeah, I'm real a cut-up." Snape said sarcastically.  
  
"You know, Severus? I think perhaps your attitude could use a little adjustment." She said, after reaching her desk. "Would you please come to the front of the class?" "Excuse me?" Snape looked utterly mortified. "I am grown man. I do not have to sit here and listen to you treat me like a child!" Snape roared, standing up.  
  
"This is madness, this is—" "My class, and you will obey my rules. Come here!" Harry saw Snape shaking with rage, so much in fact, that he walked slowly in restraint so as not to run and strangle Ms. Landor.  
  
"Now Severus, perhaps you could give your best example of your part, the clown." Snape shook so furiously that his feet tapped on the floor. Ms. Landor handed him a scene from the play. "Now, begin."  
  
Snape sighed, and looked at the paper. "Mine, sir. 'O, a pit of clay for to be made—'" "No! It says plainly on your paper—'Sings'. Act the part Severus, BE the part. BE the clown. Say it with me Severus, 'I'm a clown'. Come on, 'I'm a clown.'"  
  
Snape looked around the room, and fixed his eyes on Harry. His nostrils flared, and his stared bored into Harry's eyes—ferociously. "I'm...a clown." He said.  
  
"Again!" Ms. Landor said, enthusiastically. "Come on! Feeling! BE the clown!" "I'm a clown." He said again, looking at Remus now. "Again!" "I'm a clown."  
  
Harry thought Snape looked as if he was going to cry. "I'm a clown.." "Now, you can sing the part!" she said. Snape shook his head. "I don't sing!" he snarled.  
  
"Ok, Ok. Tomorrow." She said satisfied. "You may take your seat." The students roared with laughter, but quickly stopped when they spotted Snape's humiliated, angry face. "Good first day!" she said.  
  
Harry, Hermione, Ron, and Ginny left the class in laughter. "Did you see Snape? He was going to cry! That would have been SO funny." Ron said. Ginny giggled hard, and Hermione smiled a bit. "I hope he doesn't quit the play half-way through it," Hermione said, flipping through her book.  
  
"It wouldn't surprise me if he did. He's no fun!" Ginny said. The group walked back to Gryffindor Tower, and waiting by the Portrait of the Fat Lady was Luna. "Ronald. You didn't come last night to the library—I waited for you." She said, a little creepily.  
  
"I'm sorry Luna, I was really busy." He said, rubbing the back of his neck. "Well, please come today. We really need to do these exercises. We'll be as brilliant as Carl Kierkegaard, the famous auror that discovered the 4 eyes Canklebop." She said, walking away, pulling the Quibbler out of her pocket.  
  
"She's odd, that one." Ron said, shaking her head.  
  
"She's a really clever person, though." Ginny said to Ron.  
  
When they entered the Common Room, all of the students were collaborating for the play. "Ginny—do you want to start now?" Neville asked her, pulling his bag off of his shoulder.  
  
"Sure, let me put my books in my dorm." Ginny hurried off up the stairs, and Ron sat down near the window. "I don't want to do this! I have to be Rosenstern—"  
  
"Rosencrantz!" Harry and Hermione said at that same time. "Oh yeah—see? I don't even know my character's name." Ron sighed and closed the curtains. "Well, if you don't practice, you're going to mess up the play!" Hermione scowled. "This is very important." She said.  
  
"Yeah well, maybe if we do bad, they won't implement the plays for generations to come!" Ron said, staring at the wall. "Come on, Harry. We need to start." Hermione took Harry's arm and led him away. "Where are we going to do this? The—"  
  
"The library is probably full." She sighed, walking out of the Common Room and into the hall way. "Let's go to the Quidditch pitch." Harry said. "Ok."  
  
They walked out of the school and entered the pitch. It wasn't quite dark, but the sun was just beginning to set. Harry and Hermione made their way to the top of the Gryffindor stands and sat down.  
  
"What are we supposed to do?" Harry asked, looking at his watch. "She said talk. I guess we can look at the play." Hermione pulled the play out of her bag and opened it to the first scene. "Let's see, your first lines aren't until scene two.." she said searching the pages. Harry wasn't listening; he kept thinking about Ginny.  
  
"Do you know when the next Hogsmeade trip is?" he asked Hermione. "But my lines are in the first scene..." she said; she wasn't listening either. "Hermione! When is the next Hogsmeade trip?" he said, putting his hand on her papers. "Uh...I think next weekend." She said, pushing Harry's hand. She went back to the play while he sat there, and then she stopped.  
  
"Did you have a good time with Ginny last week?" she asked all of a sudden. "Yeah..." Harry said dreamily. "Well that's good." She said. She put her papers away. "Did you have a good time with Ron?" he asked, half automatically. "Yes, it was nice." She said brusquely. Harry turned to her.  
  
"He acted odd when we came back." He laughed. "It was like someone had put a spell on him." He said. "Yeah well, none of that was going on." She assured him. They both looked at the sun while it was setting, and Hermione sighed. "It's getting hard to read out here. Let's go back in." Harry said. She agreed and stood up. They walked back into the castle and back to Gryffindor tower. 


	7. Progress

Chapter 7: Progress  
  
"PROGRESS!" Ms. Landor said, slamming her wand on Cho's desk. "How is it going? I want people to tell me how this exercise is working out for you. If you're doing it right, you should be making extreme progress." Ms. Landor pointed at Cho and Draco.  
  
"Please! Come up." Cho sighed and walked to the front. Draco winked at Crabbe and Goyle as he came to the front. "Now! Pray tell, what have each of you learned about the other?" Cho sighed about to speak, but Draco interrupted.  
  
"Well, whether or not she thought I knew, Cho Chang's mother was a Chinese...ehem...'night worker'. Her father was a wizard that had to make trips to China now and then, and he met her in a—" "Quite enough!" Ms. Landor said. She looked outraged.  
  
Cho was blushing brighter than ever. She was shaking with anger and humiliation. "Now, my dear, please, what have you learned?" Cho tried to talk, but no words came out. "I...I...He..." An evil expression came over Cho's face as she searched for something to say.  
  
"His father's a Death Eater, and he's in Azkaban for—" Draco's mouth fell open and he searched for his wand. "NOW, NOW! Sit down, both of you!" Ms. Landor looked appalled and angrier than she had ever been.  
  
"I meant for you to learn something POSITIVE about the other person. Some people can't help what their parents are or.." She looked at Draco. "What they've done." Ms. Landor walked back to her desk and scratched her head with her wand.  
  
"Please, give me a pair that have done what I asked them to!" she sighed and looked around the room. She pointed to Snape and Lupin. "Ahh...I'm sure you two have learned much about each other!" she smiled slyly. "Nothing I didn't already know!" Snape said, putting his chin on the palm of his hand. "Same here!" Remus growled.  
  
"Will someone tell me something?" she looked around the room, and all the students looked down. "My...well, this is going to be much harder than I thought. If you can't do for in class, then I suppose no one is in need of the exam waiver..." Hands shot in the air.  
  
"Of course! You must BECOME the characters people! You must talk to your partners, get to KNOW them." Harry and Hermione looked at each other at the same time; he felt guilty for ignoring her the day before. -- It was mid-March, and Ms. Landor finally had the students practicing different scenes in front of the class. Much to their dismay, Ms. Landor drilled them constantly for perfection in acting their parts.  
  
"Mr. Malfoy, Ms. Chang! Scene III, Act I!" Ms. Landor said, pointing her wand at them. Cho and Draco trudged to the front of the class. Draco scratched his head and cleared his throat.  
  
"My necessaries are embark'd. Farewell. And, and sister, as the winds give benefit and convoy is assistant, do not sleep but let me hear from you." He said, trying to stay in character. "Good! The memory potions are very useful! I am glad you have decided to use them, Mr. Malfoy." Draco smiled evilly. "Ms. Chang." Ms. Landor nodded at her. "Er..Do you doubt that?" she said.  
  
"For Hamlet, and the trifling of his favor, hold it a fashion and a toy in blood, a violet in the youth of primy nature, forward! Not permanent, sweet, not lasting, the perfume and suppliance of a minute—no more!" "No more but so?" she said. "Good!" Ms. Landor said. "Excellent. When this is in full production, I expect just as much feeling! Now, Severus and Remus!" she said, looking towards the back of the room.  
  
By this time, Lupin and Snape had become more acquainted and accepting of the procedures within Ms. Landor's class, but that didn't make them any more enthusiastic about the whole ordeal. They walked to the front of the class. "Scene I, Act V." she said to them. Snape adjusted his robes; Lupin, his tie.  
  
"Is she to be buried in Christian burial when she willfully seeks her own salvation?" Remus said as clown one. "I tell the she is; therefore make her grave straight. The crowner hath sat on her, and finds it Christian burial." Snape said in a monotonous voice.  
  
"Severus! In character! Do we have to do the clown exercise ag—" "No! No..." Snape winced. "How can that be, unless she drown'd herself in her own defense?" Lupin continued. "Why, 'tis found so!" Snape said passionately.  
  
"It must be 'se offendendo'; it cannot be else. For, here lies the point: if I drown myself wittingly, it argues an act, and an act hat three braches—it is to act, to do, and to perform. Argal, she drown'd herself wittingly!" Lupin said inquisitively. "Excellent! My best actors yet!" Ms. Landor said. Severus took a bow without smiling towards the class and walked back to his desk.  
  
Lupin shook his head smiling and walked back to his seat. "Rosencrantz, Guildenstern, and Hamlet!" she said, pointing to Ron, Luna, and Harry. Ron and Harry sighed and stood up, Luna wandered to the front in a daze. "Scene II, Act II—lines 220." She said.  
  
It might seem amazing that students of this age could remember such in depth plays, but in fact, a potion had been concocted to help remember the play bit by bit. Snape had created it for himself and had used it before a class session, in which Ms. Landor found out and said: "Well Severus, I hope you brought enough for the whole class!"  
  
"God save you, sir!" Ron said. "My honor'd lord!" Luna said in character—it frightened Ron how different she acted. "My excelled good friends! How dost thou, Guildenstern? Ah, Rosencrantz! Good ladsm how do you both?" Harry said, walking towards them with outstretched arms. "As the indifferent children of the earth!" Ron said.  
  
"Happy in that we are not over-happy. ON Fortune's cap we are not the very button." Luna said, her eye brows raising. "Nor the soles of her shoe?" Harry said with a questioning tone. Harry heard Hermione and Ginny giggle behind him. He looked back and they had their thumbs up, smiling. 


End file.
